Standoff continues over Golden Gate Park recycling center

Recreation and Park Department chief Phil Ginsburg said today that he has no intention to back off a plan approved by his commission to oust the longtime recycling center from Golden Gate Park.

But that hasn’t deterred supporters from holding out hope that the decision will be reversed.

”It’s not a fait accompli,” Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi said after a four-hour City Hall hearing on the fate of the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Center (HANC) recycling facility. Located in the southeast corner of the park, the recycling center is no stranger to controversy, drawing both praise and criticism in the community.

Rec and Park officials plan to transform the property into a community garden, which, they say, would be a more conducive use of the park site.

Mirkarimi, who called for the hearing, plans to introduce a resolution at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting asking the Recreation and Park Department to allow the recycling center to stay, saying it serves an important role in San Francisco’s overall recycling efforts and as a partner with community organizations that it supports with grants. Should the center be forced to leave, Mirkarimi also wants to urge city departments to help the center find an alternative place to operate in the area.

All the supervisors can do, however, is make a request; the Recreation and Park Department is under no obligation to comply.

The nonprofit HANC received a 90-day eviction notice from the city to vacate the premises by March 2.

HANC representatives said the center has a legal right to stay put until June, and in the meantime will wage a public relations and political battle to remain open. ”This is far from over,” said Ed Dunn, executive director of the recycling center.

Ultimately, the decision may come down to Mayor Ed Lee, who met with HANC representatives last week. The mayor said Friday that he has not taken a position on the controversy. ‘I’m just right now trying to understand what it is,” he said.